Speech therapy government help, Apraxia of Speech?

Question

I have Apraxia of Speech (24 years old). I was in speech therapy from preschool till 10th grade, and I'll probably need speech therapy for another few years possibly rest of my life.

Is there any government help in funding the therapy?

I'll be starting at ASU College in a few months and they require 450 for just the evaluation proving that you HAVE a disability (I have no current documentation as it's been 7 years and my highschool destroyed all the papers)

It's a life long condition that affects ability to socialize, get/hold a relationship and most importantly a job. Surely there has to be some form of help out there. I have no health insurance and no extra money from my part time job (full time is impossible)

Answer 1

Yes there is. I formerly worked at the Department of Human Services in Arkansas and am now a graduate student majoring in Speech Language Pathology. You can apply for disability and the state will pay to have you evaluated by a doctor rather than you paying. You just need to make them aware that you are unable to pay. The speech clinic on campus (if you have one) will help to fill out any paperwork related to their area. You will probably be sent to an ENT or Otolaryngologist of some sort to help assess your condition. Once this process begins, you can contact a Rehabilitation Counseling service in your area. Many times, due to your deficit (apraxia), they can assist you in your career choices and many times pay for your schooling or help you to fill out the government driven programs that will pay for this. Remember also, that if you are independent from parents and living on your own, as a student that is working with Rehabilitation Services, you should be able to qualify for a state based Medicaid program (up to 90 days wait for approval) and the Food Stamp program (30 day wait, but pays out approximately 150 monthly). Use all of these benefits while you are trying to better yourself. That is what they are there for. Also, you will qualify for based on your income housing. With adequate research, you can find a nice apartment that will be low to no rent as they do not count federal grants or school loans as income. It takes time for all of these, but the benefits greatly outweigh the time needed to complete the applications.

One more thing, many campus speech clinics have scholarship programs for those in need to help temporarily until they are approved for a medicaid program. Sometimes there are scholarships even if you are not applying for medicaid.

Answer 2

Here are a couple of suggestions that might get you on the right track...

Get in touch with ASU College and ask them this. If they just tell you that you need to take an eval, then ask what type of financial assisstance` you can get for it. Also, ask them for more resources. There should be someone that should be able to help you.

Call the high school you graduated from and ask them how to get the records that they destroyed. Also, ask them for resources. You should've had an IEP that explained your disability, and what services you had to have. Even if the school does not have record of this, the department of education should, and your parents should have at least one copy (you should've had one every year).

Call the local child health and special services, and explain that you once had services, but you are now an adult getting ready to go to college but need the same services, and was wondering if they could direct you to someone who could help.

Good luck!

Answer 3

ASU has a student speech clinic for training future speech pathologists. They will offer therapy on a sliding-scale fee schedule. I don't know what you are referring to when you mention a $450 fee for an evaluation; that strikes me as very odd. Because you have problems communicating that will affect your ability to work, consider applying for SSI. You may also qualify for Medicaid. Go to the university's office of disabled student services. They will have all sorts of resources for you.

Answer 4

Here are a few thoughts:

1)There are state vocational rehabilitation centers. I don't know where ASU is so you can check online for where to find yours. They might have some direction for you.

2)You might find useful info at:
http://www.ssa.gov/work/ServiceProviders/rehabproviders.html

2) If you've been to thousands of speech therapy sessions, you know what goes on, so you can probably do quite a lot yourself. All my kids have/had apraxia of speech. I've only been to hundreds of sessions with them, and I'm pretty sure I could provide the therapy. Don't get me wrong: I have great respect for SLPs and their extensive training. That said, between your own experience receiving the therapy and the availability of info via books & internet, you're probably better equipped to provide your therapy than the vast majority of SLPs out there! Really.

Answer 5

I understand what you are going through. My son had his first ear infection at 2 months and one every month after that. He was talking saying "mom, dadda, no go and many other owrds" when he got to be about 16 months old he started to slow down his talking and I was scared. I talked with his doctor and she said he was speech delay. I haqd an appointment with the ear, nose doctor with in a week. I got tubes but in and the very next day he stated talking. You know your son the best. If you think he need speech take him or talk to his doctor and ask questions..He will talk when he has some thing to say. I think you shouls go see his doctor and tell him what the problem is. I love my son doctor she is the best and she had kids of her own so she can understand what am going throw.

Answer 6

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good luck